BioMed Innovation

Key Responsibilities in Medical Equipment Planning
Needs Assessment:

Collaborate with healthcare professionals to determine the types and quantities of medical equipment required.
Assess the clinical and operational needs to ensure the equipment will meet the demands of the healthcare facility.
Selection and Procurement:

Research and evaluate different types of medical equipment based on functionality, reliability, and cost.
Develop specifications for equipment and initiate the procurement process.
Negotiate with vendors and manage contracts to secure the best terms and warranties.
Installation and Commissioning:

Plan the layout and installation of equipment to ensure it fits within the designated space and complies with safety standards.
Oversee the installation process, ensuring that equipment is properly set up and tested for functionality.
Train staff on the proper use and maintenance of the equipment.
Regulatory Compliance:

Ensure all equipment complies with local and international regulations and standards.
Maintain documentation for inspections and audits.
Lifecycle Management:

Monitor the performance and condition of equipment.
Plan for regular maintenance, repairs, and eventual replacement of outdated or faulty equipment.
Manage the disposal of decommissioned equipment in an environmentally responsible manner.

Scientists develop new photonic sensors to detect SARS-CoV-2

A multidisciplinary team of scientists from the University of Malaga, Spain, is developing a point-of-care system based on photonic sensors to detect SARS-CoV-2.

Led by Robert Halir, a researcher at the Higher Technical School of Telecommunications Engineering, the team has developed a prototype of the sensing system based on photonic chips, and a measuring device, which can detect SARS-CoV-2 proteins in very low concentrations. The prototype has been developed over the past four years and was originally developed to detect antibody biomarkers present in patients that are allergic to antibiotics.

Halir said: “PCR techniques currently applied to detect the virus are reliable, but also slow and expensive, while serological assays, though simpler, lack precision and cannot provide quantitative results.”

Halir explained that their system will precisely add functionality and, in the future, could offer real-time results at a lower cost. The team has been funded with €95,000 under the COVID-19 Fund of the Government of Andalusia to work, for one year, towards demonstrating the system’s ability to detect SARS-CoV-2.

This funding will also allow the team to make changes to the technology in order to reduce its price. Halir said: “If results are satisfactory, in the future we will be able to develop a completely functional point-of-care equipment to be deployed in primary healthcare centres.”

According to the research team, cost reduction would be significant compared to PCR testing, because these tests could be performed directly by family doctors, thus saving the costs of specialised laboratories. The photonic sensors can detect SARS-CoV-2 in less than an hour, significantly reducing the current wait time of COVID-19 tests.

Additional advantages of these sensors include: the ability to detect lower concentrations of antibodies and the technology can also identify the exact number of antibodies a tested person has. “If we succeed, we believe that a commercial prototype could be developed in the near future”, says Halir.

Health Innovation
21st October 2020
Published in :INNOVATION NEWS N E T W O R K

Monarch is a new platform from surgical robot pioneer Frederic Moll.
Auris revealed the Monarch Platform, which swaps the da Vinci’s surgical approach for something far less invasive. The system utilizes the common endoscopy procedure to a insert
a flexible robot into hard to reach places inside the human body. A doctor trained on the system uses a video game-style controller to navigate inside, with help from 3D models.
Monarch’s first target is lung cancer, the which tops the list of deadliest cancers. More deaths could be stopped, if doctors were able to catch the disease in its early stages, but the lung’s complex structures, combined with current techniques, make the process difficult. According to the company, “More than 90-percent of people diagnosed with lung cancer do not survive, in part because it is often found at an advanced stage.”

ARveo Microscope : Leica Microsystems, Germany

The ARveo augmented reality microscope with integrated GLOW800 AR fluorescence

A single vision for the future

Cutting edge view of ARveo digital augmented reality microscope marks a new generation of integrated rich information instruments

Wetzlar, Germany. Leica Microsystems launches the ARveo digital augmented reality microscope at the Annual Scientific Meeting 2018 of the American Association of Neurological Surgeons (AANS). The ARveo is a highly advanced neurosurgical microscope with integrated digital augmented reality imaging including groundbreaking GLOW AR technology. GLOW AR technology combines white light and fluorescence into a single, precise view of the surgical site. The ARveo also provides flexible viewing options such as image injection and 3D, as well as wireless sharing beyond the OR. With this comprehensive visualization solution, surgeons have more information to support critical intra-surgical decisions.

“Maximum visual information about cerebral anatomy and physiological processes – this is what neurosurgeons have told us they need most when performing life-changing neurosurgical interventions” says Markus Lusser, President of Leica Microsystems. “ARveo with integrated GLOW AR takes surgical visualization to the next level by placing the latest digital imaging technology at the service of medical progress in the best possible way. The augmented visual information empowers decision-making and supports optimal patient outcomes.”

The ARveo microscope can be supplied with built-in GLOW800* AR fluorescence, the first modality to be powered by groundbreaking GLOW AR technology. GLOW800 takes the high contrast of the ICG fluorescence signal and combines with the white light image to provide a single view of cerebral anatomy in natural color augmented by real-time vascular flow. As GLOW AR technology is future-ready, hospitals can stay at the cutting edge by upgrading as soon as the next modality is launched.